Comfort in His Arms
by CallistaStar
Summary: A short sequel to a multi-chapter story (yes, I need to upload it here lol) about my OC (Callie) and Yusei in the future.


**Comfort in His Arms**

I should have been happy. Finally, I found the man of my dreams and he became a reality. He entered my life in a way that I never thought would happen but then he appeared almost before me. Together, we weathered through some dangers and troubles and never once did he abandon me. He was different from the other men I dated. He was special and although I didn't think it was possible, I fell deeply in love with him. However, I felt fear run through me, as I was reluctant to admit that I loved him, because that would have meant that the future would have changed for the both of us. I didn't think it was right to change what had already been planned but fortunately, he persuaded me that just because there were certain expectations of how the future should be, it didn't mean that we had to follow them. Each of us can determine the path before us and he gave me the strength to take a chance on love and on him.

So why did I still have fears and doubts? I was in his world now and happily married to my soul mate for over a year now. I guess I still remember being put down by certain people who told me that nothing I did would ever be good enough, that I was a horrible person for not following certain expectations and for not following certain wishes.

These insults and taunts weighed heavily on my heart and mind as I laid in bed alone on a quiet night. The sky was clear and the stars and the moon shone brightly. However, I couldn't appreciate them as I had these hurtful memories running through me. My husband was working late and he had told me that he didn't expect to be home until very late and that it would be best for me to go to sleep. As I closed my eyes, I tried to fall asleep but found myself unable to do so. Instead, tears escaped from my eyes and ran down my cheeks. I sobbed quietly to myself, unaware that my husband had actually arrived just a few moments before. He had been able to come home earlier than he expected but kept quiet in case I was already asleep.

I took in deep breaths, hoping they would help me calm down, but found them to be ineffective. As I tried to fall asleep, I suddenly felt a touch on my right cheek. Opening my eyes in alarm, I looked into the eyes of my husband, Yusei Fudo, who looked back into mine. I'm sure that my eyes reflected sadness and depression and his eyes reflected worry and concern. Realizing that I was awake, Yusei asked,

"Hey, what's wrong?"

Immediately, I sat up on the bed, wiped away any remaining tears, and put on my best smile. I replied,

"I'm ok. Just missed you-that's all."

However, I should have known by now that my act would never fool Yusei. He sat beside me on the bed and holding my hands, he replied, "You know me better by now, Callie. No secrets between us. We promised each other, remember?"

Sighing, I nodded and replied, "I'm sorry." I looked out the window at the beautiful night sky and the continued,

"I was remembering something that happened years ago before we met. You remember what I told you about my mom?"

Yusei nodded but didn't say anything, waiting for me to continue.

I took a deep breath and then continued, "I know I told you this before and I'm sure you must be tired of hearing it but I was remembering the times when my mom used to put me down. She would say such hurtful words like how nothing I ever did was good enough for her. She was disappointed in me and she yelled a lot at me. She would compare me to her friends' kids, saying how much better they were than me." The tears started to flow from my eyes again but I didn't care. After taking a moment, I continued,

"What kind of mother does that? What kind of a parent says such hurtful words to their own child? I didn't expect my mother to praise me like an angel. I sure know that I was anything but perfect. But to hear such words…It was about as bad as being physically hurt. And just because I didn't follow her perfect future plan didn't mean that the actions I took for myself were bad. Just because she wanted to get married at a certain age, have kids, and all that doesn't mean that plan would have made me happy. But she made herself convinced that her plan would make me happy when just the thought of it made me miserable. And then she called me selfish and a horrible daughter for wanting to pursue happiness my own way.

Of course, I'm about as far away from her as I could get and she can't get to me, as far as I know. But her words and actions still linger in my mind and I would have wished that just once, she would have been happy and proud of me for being myself."

I had finished talking and was now taking in deep breaths, doing my best to calm down. Yusei didn't say anything for a minute and then deciding to break the silence, he gently asked,

"What brought this on?"

I looked down and gently patted my stomach. It wasn't flat like before but not yet quite big. Then I looked back into Yusei's eyes and replied,

"I'm afraid for our child. I don't want to become her. I don't want to become anything like my mother. I could never live with myself if I end up behaving the same way she did, putting down our son or daughter because I had unrealistic expectations. That's why I didn't want to have kids. I must be a freak compared to other women but I'd rather kill myself than treat our child with such abuse."

After I was finished, I hung down my head, waiting for Yusei's reaction. For some reason, I thought he would put me down, like how my mother used to treat me. However, I definitely should have known better since Yusei wasn't anything like her. If anything, he was closer to my dad and I was very close to my dad so I suppose that was part of the reason I fell in love with Yusei. I suppose I fit the saying that "daughters tend to want to marry men who are like their dads."

Yusei gently hugged me, his arms enveloping my body. He held me close to him and kissed me gently on my lips for a few sweet moments. Then he looked into my eyes and replied,

"I'll tell you the same thing I told you that time back when you first told me about your mom. I can't defend her and I can't understand how she could treat you so. But you are nothing like her. You are nothing like _her_."

He looked deeply into my eyes as he emphasized the last word, making sure that I understood his meaning. I nodded and then he continued,

"You have the kindest, most generous heart that I've ever known. And when I first met you, I didn't know it then that I would find my equal, someone who would give their time to help others without asking for anything in return. That's a quality quite rare. But you challenge me at the same time and aren't one of those women who worship men at their feet."

I smiled and fought the urge to laugh as Yusei mentioned the last sentence. It reminded me vaguely of how I thought Akiza treated Yusei. Yusei saw my smile and his features relaxed slightly. He then said,

"If anything, our child will be the luckiest child in the world to have you as his or her mom. I have faith that you won't be anything like your mother because you want our child to be loved, as do I. And if you ever fear that you may stray, I'll be right here to help. You won't ever be alone because the love I have for you is eternal and nothing can ever break that. I love you, my Callie, and you are my most valued treasure."

Feeling better, I decided to be a little playful and replied, "Even more valuable than your stardust dragon?"

Yusei chuckled and nodding, he replied, "Even more valuable than stardust."

I giggled, feeling better than I had before Yusei arrived home. Yusei looked happy that I was feeling better and he continued,

"And Callie, never forget how precious you are to me. You are everything to me and you make my life complete. Together, our lives can only get better."

I nodded happily in reply and Yusei leaned in to kiss me. Closing my eyes, I happily received the kiss and thought to myself about how lucky I am to have Yusei in my life. Indeed, he is my soul mate and everything he says, everything he does, fills my heart with happiness and I can't be any happier than I am when we are together.


End file.
